We are sorry to report a snafu in our promised effort to provide first-hand information on General Electric (GE, news, msgs). In the last communication that we received from the company, not only did they refuse to grant us an interview in person, they asked that we refrain from contacting the GE offices ever again. Since that time, several interesting developments have placed the refusal in perspective.
First, there was the brouhaha over Jack Welch’s in-person interviews with Suzy Wetlaufer, editor of the Harvard Business Review. And Welch himself has taken actions that lead many to believe that he is ready at a moment’s notice to assume the reins at GE again if Jeffrey Immelt’s work as chief executive is greeted with further unfavorable market and analyst sentiment. General Electric shares are down 6% this year, a regrettable performance versus the Dow Jones industrials’ 3% advance. In 2001, General Electric failed to beat the Dow’s performance for the first time in five years, falling 15% versus the index’s 7% decline.
Our studies of GE yearly returns, including dividends, from 1899 to the present, show that an investor could have realized a 7,500,000% return by investing in the company at the turn of the century and holding through 2001 (reinvesting all dividends, of course). If any readers have pull with a high-level GE executive who can evade the "Don’t Talk to Niederhoffer" interdiction and discuss this apparently touchy topic, we would appreciate an introduction.
money.msn.com
and Message 17226278 |
